Trek Suggestion

We can only give a very brief description in this web-site of the many possible treks which Nepal can offer. Even this list is not comprehensive and we can work out details of other routes if required. Some of the routes can be shortened or extended. Those routes which can be done as a tea shop trek are marked 'TS', together with the grading. Most can be done throughout the trekking season, but where there are seasonal limitations, these are marked. The routes are described in a west-east direction, starting with the Humla region and ending in the Kanchenjunga area.

Trekking Areas

Annapurna TrekRoyal Trek
Langtang & Helambu TrekSiklis Trek
Everest TrekGorkha Pokhara Trek
Helambu TrekGanesh Himal Trek
Dolpa TrekShivapuri Trek
Mustang TrekPanch Pokhari Trek
Manaslu TrekArun valley to Everest Trek
Kanchenjunga TrekMakalu Trek

ACCOMODATION & FOOD ON THE TREK

Organized treks camp each night and all you have to do is eat and crawl into your tent. Even erecting the tent is handled by the trekking crew who put it up for you at the site selected by your Guide or group leader. Independent trekkers usually stay in small lodges, guest houses or villages inns which have appeared along almost all the main trails. At first this sort of accommodation was simply a matter of local tea-houses letting you unroll your sleeping bag on the floor. Today along some of the most popular trails the lodges are quite luxurious and offer private rooms. Extensive menus and even showers. It’s possible to make long treks relying entirely on local food and accommodation. Nevertheless, it’s still a good idea to carry a sleeping bag as lodges sometimes run out of bedding at peak season, and their bedding can contain unwanted sleeping companions.

On a typical organized trek your only concern with food is sitting down to eat it. The porters carry all the food along with them, and there will be a cook with well-drilled assistants who can turn out meals of often stunning complexity. Baking a cake on kerosene stove is just one of the tricks trekking party cooks like to perform to display their virtuosity.

 
TRAIL CONDITIONS ON THE TREK

Most trekkers want to get away from roads as quickly as possible, and although roads reach farther into the hill country every years, it is still possible to leave them quickly behind. Nepali trails are often steep and taxing. The old adage that ‘that shortest path between two points is a straight line’ appears to have been firmly drummed into Nepali, irrespective of any mountains which may get in the way! In compensation, the trails are often very well maintained. Busy trails up steep slopes are often flagged with stones every step of the way.

ANNAPURNA Strenuous - Oct./.Dec./ Mar/Apr.May:
The Annapurna is that region which offered various types of trekking schedules depend on your time and interest from 3 days to month long. Surrounded by some of the highest mountain on earth and bisected by equally deep valleys, the Annapurna region in western Nepal is a land of extremes. For thousand of years, many people from diverse ethnic backgrounds have carved a lifestyle excellent habitats for a wide variety of plants and animals reflect the land’s biological diversity. Recent species of Orchids, 9 species of Rhododendrons, 101 species of mammals, 478 species of birds, 39 species of reptiles and 22 species of amphibians in the Annapurna Conservation Area.

The Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA) is Nepal’s first and largest conservation area, covering over 7,600 sq. km. Since the first trekkers came to the Annapurna area in 1957, the annual number of trekkers has increased enormously, to 47,852 in 1995. Over 10,000 of these were in the Annapurna Sanctuary area, which is on of the most environmentally sensitive tourist destinations in the ACA. The number further increases when international trekkers’ support staff and Indian trekkers are included.

 

LANGTANG & HELAMBU TREKS Strenuous - Oct./Dec, Mar/Apr.
The Langtang trek offered various types of trekking from 6 days to 21 days. Although they are not as well known and popular as the Everest Base Camp trek or the Annapurna Circuit these two trek offer a number of distinct advantages  The treks are north of the Kathmandu Valley, so both are easily accessible from Kathmandu. Indeed you can leave your hotel in Kathmandu and set foot on the Helambu trail within an hour. The Helambu trek only takes a week so it is ideal for people who do not have the time for one of the longer treks.Since it stays at relatively low altitudes it does not require fancy cold-weather equipment and clothing.

The Langtang trek, on the other hand, gives you the opportunity to get right in among the Himalayan peaks and to walk through remote and relatively unpopulated areas. If you want real adventure then these two trek can be linked by high-altitude passes, either via the Gosainkunda lakes or across the 5106m Ganjala.

EVEREST TREK Strenuous - Oct./Nov, Mar/Apr.
The Everest is that region which offered various types of trekking from 7 days to month long. Everybody knows of Mt. Everest and that’s the simple reason why the Everest Base Camp Trek is so popular. The trek has a number of stunning attractions, but it also has some distinct drawbacks which might well deter potential trekkers were it not for the undeniable plus point of being able to say you’ve been to the base of the highest mountain in the world.

The attractions include spectacular scenery and the outgoing Sherpa people of the Solu Khumbu, the region where Mt. Everest and its attendant lesser peaks are located. The drawbacks include the long, hard slog to get there and the acclimatization problems caused by the region’s considerable altitude.

It’s not until you get right into the Solu Khumbu region that the Everest trek really gets interesting. The first part of the treks is not only a hard slog, but is also pretty sparse in the breathtaking views department. The hard slog comes about because the trek doesn’t follow valleys-like the Annapurna treks-instead the Everest trek cuts across the valleys. So for day after day it’s a tiring process of dropping down one side of a steep valley and climbing up again on the other. By the time you reach the base camp your ascents will total almost 9000m, the gull height of Everest from sea level!

The Everest trek starts in the Nepali-speaking Hindu lowlands and ends in the Tibetan-Buddhist highlands where the Sherpa are renowned for their enterprise, hard work, civic responsibility and devotion to the practice of Buddhism. In their often inhospitable land, the potato, a relatively recent introduction, is the main crop, but these days trekking and mountaineering is the backbone of the Sherpa economy. More than half the population in the region is now involved with tourism and Namche Bazaar looks more like an alpine resort than a Sherpa village.

Most Everest trekkers opt to fly one way to avoid having to repeat all those ups and downs. This introduces its own problems as flights to Lukla are notorious for cancellation, waiting lists and short-tempered trekkers. If you have the time, walk in from Jiri and fly out from Lukla. If you want to make a shorter trip you can fly in to Lukla, trek to Everest and then fly out, taking 15 days to trek to Kala Pattar or you can just visit Thami, Namche Bazaar and Teng-poche in a week or so. The Everest trek may not be quite as good as the Pokhara area for village-inn treks, but plenty of accommodation is available during the trekking season even in the normally uninhabited areas around the high peaks.

HELAMBU TREK Strenuous - Oct./Nov, Mar/Apr.

The Helambu Trek only takes seven days, starts from Sundarijal at the eastern end of the Kathmandu Valley and does not climb above 3500m. It makes a loop through the Sherpa-populated Helambu region to the north-east of Kathmandu and only the first day’s walk is repeated on the return trip and it can be trekked on a village-inn basis as there are guest houses and lodges in many of the villages along the trail. The Sherpa people of the Helambu region are friendly and hospitable, just like their better known kinfolk of the Solu Khumbu region. As in Solu Khumbu, the potato is a vitally important crop and not only forms a large part of the local diet but is also exported to the Nepali lowland in exchange for rice and other produce.

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DOLPA - Moderate/Strenuous: 23-30 days trek.

Dolpa lies north-west of the great Dhaulagiri massif. In anintimate seating of Gombas, spectacular vista of mountains, plateaus, valleys and forests, Dolpa offers the strange beauty and grandeur of the far western remote region of Nepal. The lower of Dolpa is its Tibet like setting, the typical Tibetan type of landscape-bare gray brown mountains, white clouds against a lucid blue sky. The northern part of Dolpa is perhaps the highest inhabited land on earth. For some time now, Dolpa has been opened of organized trekking groups, and its attraction as a new and exotic trekking destination. Trekkers enjoy the satisfaction of exploring a region where not many have been before. Trekking to Dolpa can start at Pokhara and ending at Jumla and fly back to Kathmandu via Nepalgunj of start at Dunai and ending at Jumla.

 MUSTANG - Moderate/Strenuous: 14-17 Days.

With Mustang, many new area of Nepal have been opened for limited travel. Government opened this route to organized trekking groups only, thereby ensuring it retains its unique attractions. The route into Lo passes between stark mountainsides, through fields of barley, pastures of grazing yaks and goats and villages dominated by old Buddhist monasteries of the Sakya sect to the walled capital of Lomanthang.

 

 

MANASLU TREK - Moderate/Strenuous: 25 Days.

This trek was hidden till the last few years. Nepalese government just declared open this route to trekkers. Enjoying divers tradition and culture of Sherpas, Tamangs and other people. Trekkers certainly think about real trekking route. One may feel he/she is not on the Earth but in the Heaven. This trek begins from Trisuli; northwest of Kathmandu.

 

 

 

KANCHENJUNGA - Moderate/strenuous - Oct./Nov, March/April
18-30 days trek and exciting, special departure to the base camp of the world's third highest peak Kanchenjunga. At 8586m this great peak is topped only by Everest (8848m), and k2 (8614m) in Pakistan. The Nepalese government opened trekking groups only thereby ensuring it retains its unique attractions.

We fly to Biratnagar before driving to Basantapur to start our trekking or we can fly to Taplejung from Biratnagar directly. This is a magnificent walk, starting in the beautiful lowlands of Nepal. We pass through terraced fields, rice paddies and by the neat clustered house of the Newar, Chhettri and Rai people. The trail climbs gradually into a ridgeline of rhododendron, hemlock and fir. The views are spectacular, including Everest, Makalu (8481m), Lhotse and Kanchenjunga, four of the world's five highest mountains. As we gain altitude the views become even more dramatic as we approach the Yalung Glacier. Heading west over a series of high passes, we also visit Pangpema, (4800m) the base camp for many expeditions attempting Kanchenjunga. Our return trail follows the Tamor river valley, before we fly out from Taplejung to Kathmandu. A challenging trek to a rarely visited area amongst stunning Himalayan majesty.

THE ROYAL TREK - Easy.

A 5 day trek followed by Prince Charles: hence the name! Starting in Pokhara, this low-level route follows the Bijaipur Khola east to Begnastal lake.

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THE SIKLIS - Easy.

An 8 days trek starting in Pokhara and ending at Begnastal lake. Very few people follow this short but easy trek in the foothills northeast of Pokhara. Splendid views and unspoiled country side.

GORKHA-POKHARA - Easy.

A 9 Days trek through the foothills south of Manaslu and the Lamjung Himal, east of Pokhara. Can be combined with the Royal Trek to finish in Pokhara.

GANESH HIMAL TREK - Moderate.

A 15 Days trek starting in Trisuli Bazaar and ending in Gorkha. A little frequented route which explores Ganesh Himal and reaches Ganesh Base Camp (3570m).

SHIVAPURI TREK - East.

A 4 Days trek along the Shivapuri ridge which forms the northern rim of the Kathmandu valley, starting at Buddhanilkantha and ending at Nagarkot.

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PANCH POKHARI TREK - Moderate.

A 15 Days trek starting at Chauttara and ending at Buddhanilkantha, From Chauttara the route follows a ridge north to Panch Pokhari, an impressive circle on the southern edge of the Langtang range. We return through Helambu and follow the Shivapuri ridge to Buddhanilkantha.

ARUN VALLEY TO EVEREST - Strenuous - Oct./Dec Mar/Apr.

A 26 days trek starting with a flight to Biratnagar and road transport to Hille. We follow the Arun valley north for four days and then turn west over Salpa Bhanjyang (3350m) and Surkie La (3085m) to reach the Dudh Kosi valley. Heading north we reach Namche Bazaar and continue via Tengboche and Dingoche to Kala Patter (5540m). We return to Lukla for the flight to also walk out through Solu to Jiri . For those with sufficient time, we can include further exploration of the Khumbu with ascents to Gokyo, Island Peak and Lobuche.

MAKALU - Strenuous - Oct./Nov; Mar./Apr.

A 26 days trek starting with a flight to Biratnagar and road transport to Hille. We make a detour to the delightful village of Chainpur before descending to the Arun valley which we follow to Num. Then we head northwest over high passes and through desolate but beautiful country to reach Makalu base camp (5300). We return the same way but continue further down the Arun valley to Tumlingtar for the flight back to Kathmandu. If you wish, you may return via Hille and Biratnagar in an additional four days.

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